The match, under the guise of a sheep's head, ultimately saw Su Xiaojiu's Ninetales emerge victorious. After all, the long-awaited opponent was merely a Shuckle.
Even though Shuckle's base stats were quite high after switching, it was still just one Shuckle. One couldn't expect it to simultaneously apply its attributes to both offense and defense. If it maintained high attack, it would lack defensive confidence, and if it aimed for defense, it would be impossible to defeat Ninetales. In frequent switches, it would eventually expose a weakness, allowing Su Xiaojiu to seize an opportunity.
Of course, the players from Li Xing were not to be trifled with. It took Su Xiaojiu more than ten minutes to find such an opening. By the time the match concluded, the referee was already mentally and physically exhausted. Fortunately, there was a brief rest period after the match for him to have a drink and recover.
Su Xiaojiu secured the victory with a score of two to one. In good spirits, she returned to the spectator stands. Everyone came to congratulate her. With this win, the overall score became two to zero, and the game score became four to one, a significant advantage. To those who knew the inside story, like Xia Huna'ao, even if Miao Longque suffered a three-to-zero defeat, there was still a considerable advantage. After all, an advantage in the overall score trumped a slight lead in game scores by a wide margin.
Xia Huna'ao looked up at the sky, then down at his watch. The afternoon match started at 12:30 PM and had been going on until almost 2:00 PM, which was a bit faster than the morning matches. In the remaining time, the strategies employed could very well determine whether Xia Huna'ao's final match would be concluded today.
Xia Huna'ao glanced at Chu Xiaodie and Yu Longdu, who were up next, and scratched his head. They possessed skill, but they were also the two individuals on the Ming Long country team, besides the Xia Huna'ao duo, who were the most thoroughly understood. It was too easy to strategize against them, and their individual styles were too distinct. No matter how Xia Huna'ao interfered, he couldn't create new tactics.
Of course, the main reason for the lack of new tactics was that the three of them knew each other too well; most of their strategies had already been revealed.
After a short break, Chu Xiaodie and Yu Longdu stepped onto the arena. Meng Tianya approached Xia Huna'ao and asked for his opinion on the upcoming match: "How do you think this match will turn out?"
Xia Huna'ao merely shook his head in silence. Meng Tianya understood: "Let's hope A'du can showcase his style and skill, right?"
Xia Huna'ao remained silent, simply watching the match unfold with a speechless expression.
The third game of the finals, the last match of the first half, a two-on-two. Chu Xiaodie and Yu Longdu aimed for an auspicious start, sending out Butterfree and Charizard respectively.
The third referee on duty surveyed the lineup and nodded: "Yes, excellent. These two Pokémon won't cause any unforeseen trouble for me."
As for why it was the third referee, that was a decision made by the referee panel after collective deliberation. Midway through Su Xiaojiu's match, the referee team held an impromptu meeting to discuss whether to change the referee for the upcoming matches.
The referee from the morning, Man Ying, gave his full support. As someone who had experienced it, he knew the pressure that came from the trainer battles on the referee. Besides, there were plenty of people on the referee team; who officiated didn't make much difference. Thus, a third referee was brought in for the third match between the two sides.
This referee had volunteered to officiate the third match. He had also studied both teams' lineups and knew that Yu Longdu and Su Xiaojiu couldn't come up with any flashy strategies. Even if they forced some unorthodox tactics, they would be within his acceptable range.
However, as the old saying goes, man proposes, but fate disposes. If you can guard against Ming Long country, you are destined to be unable to stop Li Xing country.
"Go, Smeargle!"
Upon seeing Li Xing country send out two Smeargles, Xia Huna'ao raised his hand and made a cross gesture towards the referee on the field, as if in mourning. The referee, unlucky fellow, after confirming the Pokémon sent out by both sides, glanced left and right. Just as he was about to announce the start of the match, he saw Xia Huna'ao mourning him. The referee's eyebrows twitched slightly, and then he thought to himself: That Xia Huna'ao understands me. This is too damn difficult.
After lamenting the referee's plight, Xia Huna'ao collapsed onto his chair, pulled a hat over his face, and declared, "I'm not watching this match. Just tell me the result when it's over."
Su Xiaojiu, having just finished her match, clearly had no lingering worries. Although she hadn't achieved a three-to-zero victory, Meng Tianya, in his official capacity, had already told her she played well, clearly indicating a stance of no repercussions. She could now resume her mindset of interacting with Xia Huna'ao and the others: "Isn't the result of this match going to be not very good?"
Xia Huna'ao pointed to Mu Zhishui, who was sitting beside him. Mu Zhishui's actions were identical to his; neither intended to watch the match. Fortunately, Mu Zhishui was a decent person and directly reached out to grab Rotom, which was floating behind Xia Huna'ao's head: "Rotom, show her Xia Huna'ao's annotations on the move Sketch."
Rotom, swinging its two hands, displayed Xia Huna'ao's independent annotations on the screen:
The more troublesome moves that can be Sketched include: Transform, Metronome, Copycat, Self-Destruct, Explosion, Mimic, Destiny Bond, and various OHKO moves…
Upon seeing this, Su Xiaojiu turned her head to glance at the two Smeargles on the field. Then, like Xia Huna'ao and Mu Zhishui, she obediently sat back in her chair and ignored the match. Meng Tianya, standing nearby, was quite pleased: "That's right. Everyone understands. Two Smeargles are more annoying than two Ditto. Even Xia Huna'ao understands. Analyzing this match would involve too much calculation, so let them fight it out themselves. Worrying about them would be too detrimental to ourselves."
While Ming Long country decided to lie down, Karsvidin, watching with binoculars from afar, also began to lie down. The two-Smeargle plan was his proposal, and he was well aware of its power.
With both sides watching and choosing to lie down, only the referee, who was a legitimate bystander, was in a difficult position. From the start of the match, the situation had been chaotic. As the referee, he felt his head spinning watching the skills fly back and forth between the two sides.
Quite some time had passed since the battle began, and the two Smeargles were still only using Metronome, employing it with a grandeur that suggested their PP was maxed out. This couldn't help but remind Chu Xiaodie of her very lucky classmate. Even Zheng Xiaoxiao, as the coach, thought of her distinctive student: "If Guo Shuang'er were on the field, how surprising would that be."
Xia Huna'ao and Mu Zhishui both shivered simultaneously: "What kind of Uncle Vautrin is this?"
However, it had to be said that if Guo Shuang'er were on the field, and both sides were using Metronome, it was uncertain who would end up out-fingering whom. But there was no such hypothetical on the field, and the luck of Li Xing country's two Smeargles was clearly very good. The moves they used via Metronome caused significant trouble for Butterfree and Charizard. Yu Longdu gritted his teeth and had Charizard fly up with Butterfree, intending to rely on altitude for sustained attrition. However, Li Xing country's duo, giving the referee some face, used Metronome to call down Gravity, pinning Charizard and Butterfree to the ground.
In Xia Huna'ao's view, flying-type Pokémon that couldn't fly had no combat effectiveness. Chu Xiaodie, a direct disciple of Xia Huna'ao, held this theory as gospel. Although Gravity couldn't be removed by any means, Chu Xiaodie had no intention of waiting passively: "Butterfree, move! Use Powder Snow to propel yourself!"
Although they couldn't fly in the Gravity state, the force generated by Powder Snow could still lift a relatively light Pokémon like Butterfree. Coupled with Charizard flapping its wings, Butterfree was quickly blown behind the two Smeargles.
Standing behind the Smeargles, Butterfree launched an attack, catching the two Smeargles off guard. One Smeargle immediately counterattacked. A Smeargle used Sketch to copy Transform, turning into a Charizard and knocking Butterfree senseless with a gout of fire.
While the transformed Smeargle reduced many variables, dealing with a Butterfree that couldn't fly and had a type disadvantage was not particularly difficult.
Upon hearing about Transform, Xia Huna'ao slightly pushed up his hat with his finger: "Oh? Transformed? How to put it, they've tried their best, we can't ask for too much."
Meng Tianya agreed with this assessment: "They've indeed tried their best. This isn't a gap in skill, but simply a lack of luck. I didn't expect a team to be able to suppress our players purely through luck. The last time I saw such a scene was during your Grand Festival."
Xia Huna'ao and Meng Tianya reached their conclusion. Meanwhile, the two players on the field decided to make a final struggle. Even though Butterfree had been dealt with, it would still be very beneficial for Charizard to take down one of the Smeargles.
"Charizard, approach the Smeargle and use Flamethrower!"
Charizard moved towards the Smeargle. A non-flying Charizard was quite awkward relying solely on its legs. The Smeargles, meanwhile, grabbed their tails and presented themselves directly to Charizard. Charizard unleashed a Flamethrower and then decisively engaged in a mutual knockout with the Smeargle. 138 Reading Network.
"Destiny Bond again? What trump cards do they have to consistently employ such mutually destructive tactics?"
Yu Longdu cursed angrily, then recalled his Pokémon. The match between the two sides concluded, with Li Xing country temporarily taking the lead. The referee standing on the field also let out a sigh of relief: "Thankfully, this match ended quickly. It seems I won't be too tormented."